Why Do We Sabotage Our Holidays by Scrolling, Overthinking, or Worrying We're Not Relaxed Enough?

Holidays are a rare opportunity to switch off. So why do so many of us manage to sabotage that by scrolling, overthinking – or simply worrying we’re not relaxed enough? Olivia Petter, who struggled to pull herself away from the screen on her recent trip to France, asks experts how we can enjoy our summers away.

I’m on a sunlounger having a conversation with myself. So far, we’ve discussed the weather (delightful but a little cloudy), the book I’m struggling with (a Polish novel a friend bought me), and my anxiety about the emails I haven’t replied to (there are hundreds). This is supposed to be a holiday, one I’ve waited months for, and yet I couldn’t feel less relaxed.

If anything, having spent the last two days alone in a remote French suburb – a tactic employed to help me decompress before some friends join me – my prone-to-overthinking brain feels more wired than ever, desperate for something to cling to that will propel it into a deep yet strangely comforting downward spiral. In a world where everyone is always online, and our phones are practically attached to our bodies, it’s no wonder many of us struggle to switch off and decompress.